Beau (Remington Ranch Book 4)

by SJ McCoy

  He locked the front door on his way out, and smiled. Wanda was right. No one locked their doors around here. But he did. Every time. Why was that, he wondered. He had a nice house, full of nice belongings, but Jesus, he lived in Livingston. It wasn’t exactly a hotbed of crime. He knew it had more to do with his desire for privacy than a fear of thieves. He kept his house locked, his car locked, his desk drawer locked, and he kept his true thoughts and feelings locked up, too. Why? Because he didn’t trust anyone.

  He had to wonder as he backed out of the driveway just what it was that he didn’t trust. That people would hurt him? Dislike him? He just didn’t know. He shrugged as he pulled out onto Main Street. What did it matter anyway? It was just a part of who he was. He didn’t need to be getting into self-analysis mode. What he needed to be doing was setting himself up for a nice relaxing evening. As he pulled into the parking lot by the old railroad depot, he spotted someone waving at him. Ugh. He shuddered. Angie! He lifted a hand to wave back and drove straight through the parking lot and out the other end. He’d rather make a loop through town and come back when she’d gone than have to get stuck talking to her.

  He’d taken her out a couple of times. The dating pool was pretty small in this town—and it could use a good shot of chlorine. Angie was a good-looking woman. But she wasn’t a nice person. He’d tried to kid himself that she was all right really. He’d given up the pretense after what she’d done to Carter and Summer. He’d taken her along as his date to a dinner at Cassidy’s place and she’d taken photos of Summer and Carter and gone to the local paper with some bullshit story about them. Beau had felt guilty as hell. The story had caused all kinds of problems for Carter and Summer. Carter had gone AWOL for a while, then Summer had left the valley and gone back to Nashville. All because he, Beau Remington, would rather show up with a stupid date than no date at all. What was his problem? He didn’t need a woman in his life. So why didn’t he like to be seen out without one? He drove back down Main and looped his way back. He checked the parking lot, but there was no sign of Angie anymore. Good. He didn’t need to hear her apologies, yet again, or to tell her, yet again, that he wasn’t interested.

  He checked the coast was clear before he got out of the car and locked it before hurrying into Deb’s wine store. He loved this place. Deb knew her wines, and her cheese for that matter. He could spend hours in here browsing and talking wine with her. She wasn’t around today though. Lisa looked up from her perch behind the counter when he walked in. She was a nice enough girl and quite knowledgeable, but Beau wouldn’t be stopping to chat with her.

  “Hi, Mr. Remington.”

  He nodded. “Lisa.” He walked past her and on down to the Cabernet Sauvignon section. Tonight he wanted something big and bold. He browsed the shelves; there were some familiar favorites that might do the trick, and a couple of non-starters. Deb worked with a couple of importers, a couple of distributors, and even directly with a couple of California wine makers. Beau was always impressed by the selection she stocked. As he ran his gaze over the upper shelves, he stopped and grinned. There were two bottles of a California Cab he absolutely loved. Deb couldn’t always get it and, at over two hundred dollars a bottle, that was maybe a good thing. When she did have any he had to buy it. He reached up and grabbed both bottles, then made his way to the little deli counter at the back of the store. He’d want some good cheese to go with this.

  While Alice, who ran the deli counter, was cutting his cheese, the doorbell rang as someone came in. He could hear a woman’s voice talking to Lisa. It was such a sexy sounding voice, he had to turn to see its owner. He couldn’t though. A wave of goose bumps ran down his spine as he continued to listen. He couldn’t make out the actual words she spoke, just the soft gentle tones. He smiled. Getting shot of Angie had been a good thing, but that had been a while ago now. He hadn’t thought he missed a woman’s company, but from the way his body was reacting to just the sound of that sweet voice, it seemed he did miss something. He rubbed his hands together, surprised at how sweaty his palms were. His heart was beating fast and loud. So strange. He really needed to catch a glimpse of the owner of that voice. He had to bite back a chuckle, she was probably hideous. One look at her would no doubt bring him right back down to earth.

  Alice placed the cheese on top of the counter. “Anything else?”

  He shook his head. “That’s it, thanks.”

  “Okay. You give my best to your momma for me when you see her next.”

  “Will do. Have a good weekend, Alice.”

  “And you, Beau.”

  He tucked the two bottles under one arm and picked up the cheese then started making his way up to the counter at the front—toward that voice that seemed to be drawing him in like a siren. He deliberately walked along the second aisle, so he wouldn’t be able to see her until he got to the counter. He wanted to live with his beautiful fantasy as long as he could before reality shattered the illusion.

  When he was halfway down the aisle, she appeared at the end of it. The fantasy fell short of the reality! He sucked in a deep breath and hugged the bottles tight to his chest. She might be the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen, but that was still no reason to drop four hundred dollars’ worth of wine on the floor. Once he had them secured, all he could do was stare. She was gorgeous! She looked like her voice sounded. Beautiful. Brown hair fell around her shoulders. She had the perfect hourglass figure. Her V-neck sweater showcased full breasts above a narrow waist, and her jeans flattered rounded hips. Hips that he wanted to take hold of and…

  She met his gaze. Her eyes were wide, he could see a little pulse fluttering in her neck. Could it be that he was having the same effect on her as she was on him? God, he hoped so. He smiled. She smiled back, her full lips turned up and a dimple appeared in her cheek.

  “Did you find it?” Lisa’s voice cut through the magic of the moment like a knife.

  “What? Err, no…”

  Beau cocked his head to one side. “What are you looking for? Can I help you find it?”

  She stared at him. “I don’t know.”

  Lisa appeared behind her, apparently coming to help her find whatever it was she was looking for. She grinned when she saw Beau. “Oh, see. You did find it. It’s right here.” She pointed at him.

  Beau was confused as hell. He wondered if he’d somehow slipped into a parallel universe. He’d just asked this woman if he could help her find what she was looking for, and Lisa had told her that he was what she was looking for. What the fuck?

  Lisa laughed. “Sorry. I mean the wine.”

  Beau looked down at the two bottles he was grasping tight to his chest. “You mean these?”

  Lisa and Beautiful Woman nodded at him. She wanted his wine? He clutched them tighter. “They’re just a little farther down,” he said.

  “They’re the last two we have,” replied Lisa.

  Shit! Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit! But they were his! He’d found them first!

  Big green eyes looked up at him. Oh, for fuck’s sake. She could have them. She could have anything she wanted.

  He walked toward the counter. Lisa followed him. Beautiful Woman just stood and stared. Lisa rung him up and gave him a sour look. What? Did she think he should just hand over one of the bottles and let Beautiful buy it instead of him? Hell no!

  Once he’d swiped his card and tapped in the number, Lisa put everything in a paper bag and handed it over.

  “Enjoy,” she said, with a look that said, I hope you choke on it.

  Beau shook his head. He really was misunderstood. “Thanks, Lisa. Can you spare me another bag?”

  She huffed as though he was adding insult to injury, but handed one over.

  “Thanks.” He took one of the bottles and slid it into the second bag.

  Lisa watched openmouthed as he approached Beautiful Woman. His heart raced as he held out the bag toward her. She looked down at it and then up at him. Then she shook her head. “Oh, no. I couldn’t.”

&nbs
p; “Please? I’d like you to have it.”

  She shook her head again. “I couldn’t.” Her cheeks were flushed, that little pulse was fluttering on her neck. Damn she was as attracted to him as he was to her. He knew it! He needed to get a grip. He must seem like a crazy person. He smiled and took a gamble. “You’re new in town.” He hoped to hell she was, she had to be, he’d have found her before now if she wasn’t. “Consider this a housewarming gift.” He thrust it toward her, making her grab it instinctively.

  He grinned when she had hold of it. “I’ll see you around,” he said, and practically ran before she could argue. He heard his name being called as he sprinted across the parking lot. He wasn’t about to stop and see who it was though. It sounded like that little kid who had been here with Carly and James. He didn’t need to deal with that right now! He unlocked the car and pulled away as fast as he could. In the rearview mirror he saw Beautiful Woman emerge from the store and look around. He’d find her. She was new in town. She hadn’t denied it. He grinned. It looked like he was a bit rusty on how to impress a woman, but he was about to brush up his skills in a hurry.

  ~ ~ ~

  Corinne stood outside the store and looked around. There was a silver Mercedes pulling out onto the road. Was that him? Had he just disappeared into thin air? Had she just imagined the tall, dark, gorgeous stranger who had given her a two hundred dollar bottle of a wine, at the same time he’d stolen her breath and her senses?

  She came back to her senses in a hurry. Ruby was in the car. She’d only intended to leave her for a minute and had thought she’d be able to keep an eye on her through the store window. She hadn’t planned on getting distracted by a gorgeous looking guy and his ridiculous gift! She opened the car door, feeling immensely guilty for having left Ruby in there. Ruby wasn’t in the least concerned.

  She smiled. “I saw Beau!”

  “Bow?” Corinne wondered what she meant.

  “Yes, Beau! I like Beau. Beau’s handsome.”

  Corinne looked around wondering what kind of bow she was talking about. There was an oversized bottle in the display window of the wine store, tied with a gold ribbon bow. She must mean that. “Oh, I see. That is nice.”

  Ruby’s eyebrows knit together as she looked up at her. “You don’t know Beau.”

  Corinne sighed and put her seat belt on. She really didn’t know what Ruby meant, but she didn’t want to get into an argument with her now. She needed to get them home before it got dark. They’d braved the grocery store and now it was time to get back to the cabin, get Ruby her chicken fingers, and…she looked down at the bottle of wine. She couldn’t drink that. Or maybe she should. She’d been about to buy a bottle for herself, it was her very favorite, and though it was a crazy splurge, she’d planned to settle down with a glass after Ruby was in bed. She was celebrating the beginning of her new life, after all.

  “Thank you for my chicken fingers, Mommy,” Ruby said once she’d cleared her plate.

  Corinne smiled. Serving chicken fingers was the only time Ruby was guaranteed to finish her food. “You’re welcome. Now are you going to come and help me with the dishes?”

  Ruby grinned and climbed down from her seat at the table. She loved to help in the kitchen. Although the cabin did have a dishwasher, they’d started what Corinne hoped would be a new tradition of bringing Ruby a chair to stand on so that she could wash the dishes in the sink and Corinne dried them.

  “Are you going to work tomorrow?” Ruby asked as she sloshed water all over the draining board.

  “Just for an hour. I’m going to meet with Shane.”

  “While Mr. Mason teaches me to ride?”

  Corinne nodded. She had another week before she was supposed to start her job, but she’d set up a meeting with Shane so she could learn how he liked the place to run. She wanted to get a feel for what he expected. His brother, Mason, had offered to let Ruby ride one of the ponies and Corinne had seen that as her chance to get an hour with Shane. Ruby was going to start Pre-K when she started work, but until then, she’d have to take any opportunity she got to take care of other things.

  “I like Mr. Mason. He’s handsome.”

  Corinne smiled. He was, too! All the Remington men were very handsome indeed. Shane was flirty and outgoing, Mason was broody and commanding, Carter was the strong silent type. There was one brother she hadn’t met yet. She almost dropped the plate she was drying. It couldn’t be! She looked at Ruby. “Who did you see when you were waiting in the car today?”

  “Beau.”

  “Who’s Beau?”

  “Summer Breese’s friend.”

  “Is he Carter’s friend, too?”

  “Of course he is, silly. He’s his brother.”

  Corinne’s heart started to pound in her chest. So the tall, dark, expensive wine drinking stranger, was the fourth Remington brother? She didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. She was bound to see him again then, but he was totally and utterly off limits. She blew out a big sigh. Who was she kidding? All men were off limits to a woman in her situation.

  ~ ~ ~

  Beau put his feet up on the coffee table and took a sip of his wine. Damn, that was good. He shook his head with a rueful smile. And now he only had one bottle of it to enjoy. What the hell had he been thinking? Two hundred bucks! And he’d just thrust the bottle at that woman. That breathtaking woman with the voice like warm honey. The one he would no doubt never see again. What an idiot! He picked up a piece of cheese and a cracker. Ah well. Maybe it’d do him good to make a fool of himself now and then. He hadn’t done anything so stupid in a long time, if ever. Normally he liked to make sure every move was well thought out, every word was carefully chosen. He smiled. Wouldn’t it give Wanda a laugh to know what he’d done? She’d probably demand a raise, if he could give two hundred dollars’ worth of wine to a complete stranger, he could damned well give her a couple more bucks an hour! He could hear her.

  He picked up the remote and turned on the TV. Time to get the movie going and get his mind off Beautiful Woman. She’d been the highlight of his Friday night, and that was a good thing. But wasn’t it really a bad thing? That he had so little going on in his life that a chance encounter with an attractive stranger was the best thing that had happened to him in a long time.

  He stared at the TV for a few moments. He didn’t really have a life outside of work, so when was anything good supposed to happen? These last few months he’d been getting together with his brothers and their girls for dinner once a week. He enjoyed that. But that was the sum total of his social life. He sighed. He didn’t normally care. Hell, it suited him, it was his choice. He couldn’t let bumping into Beautiful Woman change the way he felt about himself and his world. Maybe he just needed more going on. He stared at the TV while he wondered about it. The commercials came on and he watched a wild black stallion gallop across the screen. That was it. There was one thing he enjoyed doing, and hadn’t done in way too long. Tomorrow he’d go down to the ranch and take his horse Troy out. He rarely made time to ride any more, but he always felt happier when he did.

  He smiled and lifted his glass up in a toast to thin air. “Thanks, Beautiful.” He’d never see her again, but the green-eyed beauty at Deb’s had still managed to give him something to smile about.

  Chapter Three

  The next morning Beau took his time showering. He decided not to shave. It wasn’t like him, but he didn’t want to feel like him today. At least not the him he’d become. He wanted to go back to being the old Beau. The one who would tumble out of bed at the ranch with his brothers early on a Saturday morning so that they could all ride out checking fences. That Beau would never have even stopped to think about whether or not he should shave.

  He toweled himself down and walked into his closet. Riding jeans, where were they? He had to go all the way to the back and dig to the bottom of his jeans shelf. Wow. It really had been too long. He found his favorite shirt back there too, the red one. Why hadn’t he worn it in so long that
it was folded up all the way back here? He shook his head. It’d get worn again today.

  When he was ready he locked the house up and ran down the front steps. He drove the truck whenever he went down to the ranch, but he had to stop and check the Merc was locked on his way out. Of course it was. He climbed in the truck and started it up. Today was a good day. The sun was shining, he was going to take Troy out. He’d go say hi to his folks. He hadn’t stopped in on them for a while, though he did call every other evening to make sure they were okay. He had a big surprise he wanted to spring on them soon, too. Not today though, that could wait a while yet.

  When he got to the ranch he spotted Mason out in the arena. He had a kid on one of the ponies. Beau smiled. It seemed he wasn’t the only one wanting to go back to an earlier version of himself. Mason hadn’t given kids riding lessons in years. He focused on the stud these days, and training the horses himself. He only gave occasional clinics, and they weren’t for kids.

  Beau parked by the barn and wandered down to lean on the fence and watch. His smile faded a little when he recognized the blonde curls. Ruby! He almost turned around and walked away before she spotted him. He’d named her the two-foot tyrant when she was here visiting with her aunt and uncle. Now she was back. To live apparently. Beau didn’t even want to imagine what the mother must be like. What kind of woman could have spawned that little monster?

  “Beau!” Mason called to him before he could make his escape. He led the pony and its rider over to the fence. “Good to see you. What are you doing out here?”

  He shrugged. “I thought I’d take Troy out.”

  Mason grinned.

  “Who’s Troy?” asked Ruby. “Can I come?”

  Beau shook his head rapidly and looked to Mason for help.